"Foreign Jack Tars" Topic

"The British Royal Navy of the French Wars (1793–1815) is an enduring national symbol, but we often overlook the tens of thousands of foreign seamen who contributed to its operations. Foreign Jack Tars presents the first in-depth study of their employment in the Navy during this crucial period. Based on sources from across Britain, Europe, and the US, and blending quantitative, social, cultural, economic, and legal history, it challenges the very notions of 'Britishness' and 'foreignness'. The need for manpower during wartime meant that naval recruitment regularly bypassed cultural prejudice, and even legal status. Temporarily outstripped by practical considerations, these categories thus revealed their artificiality. The Navy was not simply an employer in the British maritime market, but a nodal point of global mobility. Exposing the inescapable transnational dimensions of a quintessentially national institution, the book highlights the instability of national boundaries, and the compromises and contradictions underlying the power of modern states."

See here

link

Armand

"Exposing the inescapable transnational dimensions of a quintessentially national institution…"

- More syllables!

We are runnning low, boatswain. Send below for more.

"..it challenges the very notions of 'Britishness' and 'foreignness'"

Methinks I detect an agenda behind this examination of the employment/impressment of foreign sailors by the Royal Navy…

Glup!

Armand

Methinks arthur1815 is on the mark.

methinks there's no agenda, just history. The nationailites of the crew of the Victory at Trafalger, for example, is just an open record:

link

From the muster list we also know where these men originated from, with many visitors to HMS Victory are surprised to learn that the crew was made up of at least 22 different nationalities at Trafalgar. At the time it was very common for the Royal Navy to enlist and to press men from ports all around the world, and there was no need to be British to fight on a British warship.

I don't think the fact that HMS Victory's crew contained many men who were not British citizens is a startling revelation – except to those with little or no knowledge of the Royal Navy in that era. But are they the target audience for the book?

The phrase I quoted suggests that the undeniable historical facts are also being used to make some other point.

Given that HMS VICTORY's crew included about 10% "foreigners", does that really extend to "tens of thousands"?
And surely nobody could type "Exposing the inescapable transnational dimensions of a quintessentially national institution, the book highlights the instability of national boundaries, and the compromises and contradictions underlying the power of modern states." with a straight face?

Given that HMS VICTORY's crew included about 10% "foreigners", does that really extend to "tens of thousands"?

Yes.

Victory had a crew in excess of 800 men.

There were 27 first to third raters at Trafalgar – even a third rate carried ~650 men. And that was by no means the whole navy.

So, say around 20,000 sailors at Trafalger. Ten percent of that is 2,000. The book covers a period of almost thirty years, so, yes tens of thousands across that time period is a not unreasonable estimate.

I don't think the fact that HMS Victory's crew contained many men who were not British citizens is a startling revelation – except to those with little or no knowledge of the Royal Navy in that era.

So, at a wild but probably fairly accurate guess, about 99% of the population of the UK?

Thanks!

Armand